Elon Musk is not the only one experimenting with his Neuralink to help blind people see again. A competitor, Science Corporation, placed chips under the retinas of several people who are legally blind. Some can now read again or play a card game.
The technology is still in the experimental phase, but was published in October Science Corporation promising results for the majority of the 38 participants. First, the patients are operated on and fitted with a 2mm chip implant under their retina.
The chip works together with special glasses that record video images with multiple cameras. These are converted into infrared patterns and received by the chip, which then converts them into electrical signals that can be picked up by the eye. In this way, the chip compensates for the visual impairment and the brain can interpret the electrical signals. Here you can see how this works in practice.
PRIMA vision technology
The system has been named ‘PRIMA’ by Science Corporation. In a sense, it mimics the natural process of how the eye is always supposed to work, but with the help of a tiny chip.
Despite the positive research results, it is not known if and when the experimental treatment will be officially approved for large-scale use.
Read more about medical innovation and subscribe to our newsletter.
Source: www.bright.nl
